Pu03c_Early and Feudal Japan

Pu03c_Early and Feudal Japan

Latitudinal

6. A social, political, & economic system based on land ownership.7. Japan’s 1st shogunate. Repelled Mongols that reached Japan.11. ‘Human-like’ or ‘Man-like’, but not necessarily in form or physical appearance.13. Marks the gateway to a Shinto Shrine. Often found near or in a body of water.14. ~80% of Japan is covered by this.17. A literary (poetic) form marked by a 5-7-5 syllabic structure. Reached it’s height during the Heian Period (8th-12th C.).18. The title of one who is entrusted with the responsibility of acting as a ‘conduit’ between the natural and supernatural worlds.20. “Divine Wind”. Protector of Japan and mortal enemy of the Mongols.22. One expression of Japan’s geologically active nature.23. Families related to one another via a common ancestor.24. A clan that has historically and traditionally been dedicated to a particular Kami. One responsibility for this type of clan is to maintain a shrine dedicated to that Kami. This tradition dates back to the prehistoric period in Japan (before 7th C).25. The ethical code of the Samurai warrior.26. In times of peace, the Samurai warrior becomes this for his Daimyo. It is an administrative role.27. Capital city of the Tokugawa Shogunate.

Longitudinal

1. Having originated, or occurring naturally, in a region or environment.2. The watery result of an oceanic earthquake.3. Japanese feudal warrior.4. Capital city of modern Japan.5. A Samurai (land-owning) lord.8. A category of faiths that view the natural world as having a spiritual element. Objects in nature are generally infused with a spiritual force.9. Overall military commander of feudal Japan. Traditionally, appointed by the Emperor, but is the ‘actual’ day-to-day ruler of the state.10. Images and/ or objects of religious reverence. Hint: Revisit the differences between the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Church during the Early Middle Ages.12. A Samurai without a lord.15. The “Divine Sun”. The top entity within Shinto’s pantheon of divine forces.16. Japan’s indigenous religion.17. Japan’s cultural golden age.19. This form of Buddhism was imported from China ~6th C. It became central to the Samurai ethic for its dependence on meditation (focused thought) and self-discipline.20. Japanese word literally translated as “divine” or “spirit”. They’re anthropomorphic forces within nature.21. A group of islands.

R03c_BUSHIDO, WARRIOR CODE OF CONDUCT

Bushido Origins By Cheryl Matrasko

Bushido is the unwritten code of conduct of the Samurai. Literally, Bushido means “warrior – samurai – ways”. Bushi is a term for warrior, but directly infers a more prestigious or higher class warrior. The “ways” or “way” is a term used by most “do-martial arts” (such as: Judo, Kendo, Aikido, and Iaido), which means “the way to … “

Bushido is comprised of a system or standards of moral principles that became the soul of the Samurai, during the feudal periods of Japan. It developed over the centuries from the influences of Zen Buddhism, Confucianism, Shintoism, and the expression of these affectations, had their medium in the visual and literary arts such as painting, poetry, and living the way of life (Bushido) they chose to take. Each of these gifts molded and shaped Bushido, as a moral standard of conduct to follow.

Influencing Bushido, Zen Buddhism lent to the Samurai a very Stoic disposition. This Stoicism was realized out of a genuine respect for life and also for death. Death, an inevitable eventuality of our own lives, is as much a part of nature as is life. It gives us an added level of thought and meaning to our existence. With the advent of death, there is the introduction of life. There are strong human emotions of anger, remorse, and detachment, etc., that are associated with death that complicate its understanding. However we are gifted by these very same feelings, that allow us to appreciate life and the things we enjoy and love. We most notably appreciate the things we take for granted once they are gone forever. The Samurai trust and faith in nature was because of the great admiration and respect for both life and death.

In tune with this level of consciousness, Shintoism also influenced the Bushido of the Samurai. To seek honor by first looking inside the soul and confront the intimate fears that we hide from ourselves, and that plague our psyche in everyday life. This is the purification of one’s soul — “… to know thyself “. In addition, Shintoism brought a sense of filial piety and loyalty to the family and homeland. When you “… know yourself, you know your weaknesses and strengths, and most of all – you know where you belong.” This sense of belonging has been attributed to the patriotic and nationalistic culture of Japaneven to this day.

Another factor in the backbone of the code of Bushido was Confucianism. It bonded community and family relationships. These relationships had several different moral priorities or qualities to them. In feudal Japan, the samurai served various different lords and their loyalty was given to them. This association was that of servant and master. The samurai himself was the head of his family. The safety and well-being depended upon him. His role was that of head of the house, husband, father, brother, or son.

The Bushido of the samurai had very deep roots in the philosophies of Zen Buddhism, Confucianism and Shintoism. With such historical origins, it is understandable why Bushido was not just a mere belief, but a culture that became the hallmark of the samurai for centuries. And this lifestyle was not forced on the samurai, but was chosen of free will. It was a serious choice to be sure, and one that they were very proud to follow.

About the Author:

Cheryl Matrasko started Aikido in 1965, studying under Isao Takahashi as her first instructor. She enjoyed working out under many well known Aikido instructors during her tenure with Takahashi Sensei and thereafter following his death in 1971. Cheryl has dedicated time with instructors in Northern Shaolin Long-Fist, Seven Stars Praying Mantis, and Daito-Ryu Aikijujitsu. Currently, she is instructing Aikido at NorthwesternUniversity’s Chicago Campus, Associate Instructor at NorthShore Aikido in Skokie, and supporting Aikido World Journal.

Teacher Note:This text was edited for brevity and clarity for classroom use by Mr.V.

Ponder:

1. What has contributed to the development of the Bushido Code? 2. Which principle or value did each contribute to this code? 3. Why would “knowing oneself” be an important part of a warrior’s training?

Main Idea: The political development of Japan, impacted by the Chinese model, contributed to a consolidation of power. That being a difficult task, given the topographical conditions, it wasn’t until the feudal period that true political unity was achieved. Japanese feudal society blended its unique geography, religion, and Chinese influence to form its own brand of feudalism. Stability, as in Europe, was a critically important trait of this social system. But, unlike Europe, the Japanese society remained in the grip of powerful local landowners for a longer period. In both cases, the collapse of the feudal system followed extensive contact with the cultures, products, and military might of foreign peoples.

CCSS…

I. Japan’s Classical Period (8th – Late 12th C. CE)
This period witnessed unprecedented peace and security under the rule of the Heian imperial dynasty. Japanese culture during this period flourished as it never had before. For this reason, Nara and Heian represent “Classical” Japan.
A. Height of Japanese Cultural Development
1. Nara Period (~710 – 794 CE.)
2. Heian Period (~794 – 1192 CE.=\> *Period of Peace and Tranquility*)

The Heian period was one of the longest periods of uninterrupted peace in early Japan; the period gets its name from the capital city, Heian-kyo (now Kyoto). The Heian government solidified the reforms of the Nara period. At the top of the official hierarchy was the Tenno, or “Divine Emperor.” The Emperor was both Confucian and Shinto; he ruled by virtue of legitimate descent from the Shinto Sun Goddess, Amaterasu. This has contributed to an unbroken imperial line of descent that stretches from before the Nara period.
3. Cultural Innovations
a. Haiku Writing
b. Noh Drama
4. Literature
a. *Tale of the Heike* tells the story of the Taira clan and its conflict with the emperor and Minamoto clan.
b. *Tale of the Genji* tells the story of the Minamoto clan and its conflict with the Taira clan.

B. Rise of Powerful Clans
1. Fujiwara Clan
The imperial advisors during the Japanese Classical Period. The Nara period was marked by struggles over the throne and which clans would “control” that throne. In order to quiet these disturbances, the capital was moved in 795 to Heian-kyo (Kyoto).
The Fujiwara began to exert greater influence on the Emperor. From 856 – 1086, the Fujiwara were the government of Japan. In 1155, however, the succession to the throne fell vacant, and the naming of Go-Shirakawa as Emperor set off a small revolution, called the *Hogen Disturbance*, which was quelled by the clans of the Taira and the Minamoto.
This was a turning point in Japanese history, for the power to determine the affairs of the state had clearly passed to the warrior clans and their massive private armies.

2. “Land Owning” Clans and Military Defense
In the earliest periods of Japanese history, warfare was largely confined to battles between separate clans; there was no separate class of soldiers. At the emergence of the Yamato state, new techniques of larger scale warfare seem to have been adopted including new technologies such as swords and armor.
The Nara government, faced with a country of sixty-six provinces of competing clans, tried to change the Japanese military system by conscripting soldiers. By the end of the Nara period, in 792, the idea was given up as a failure. Instead, the Heian government established a military system based on local militias composed of mounted horsemen. These professional soldiers were spread throughout the country and owed their loyalty to the emperor.
An important change occurred, however, in the middle of the Heian period. The samurai had evolved into private armies attached to the local aristocracy. From the middle Heian period onwards, for almost a thousand years, the Japanese military would consist of professional soldiers in numberless private armies owing their loyalty to local aristocracy and warlords. The result was growth in the power of the two greatest warrior clans, the Taira (or *Heike*) and the Minamoto (or *Genji*). The Genji controlled most of eastern Japan; the Heike had power in both eastern and western Japan.

C. Civil Strife Grips Japanese Society
After the accession of Go-Shirakawa, and later by his successor, a lord of the Taira began to slowly accrue massive power for himself in the Emperor’s court. It became apparent to the Emperor that the power of the Taira had to be diminished in some way, so he attempted to lay a military trap for the Taira lord with the aid of a minor Minamoto lord. The plot failed and opened an irreparable breach between the Taira and the retired Emperor, as well as the Minamoto. In 1179, the head of the Taira died and was replaced by his brother, a poor strategist. The Emperor, seeing he now had an advantage, began to dismiss the Taira in the capital, but the Taira began to fire court officials and marched on the capital, forcing the newly ascended Emperor off the throne. The dethroned Emperor enlisted the aid of the Minamoto and the great civil war began, ushering in the feudal age of Japan.
Minamoto Yoritomo began to build up strength. In 1185, he overran the Taira and forced them out of the capital. This war, and its aftermath, deeply affected the course of Japanese history. Minamoto Yoritomo then set up an alternative government in Kamakura; he called his alternative government, *bakufu*, or “tent government,” in contrast to the civil government of the Emperor located in Kyoto. This was a military government; it had two branches, one that administered the warriors or samurai , and the other that judged legal suits. The Kamakura military leader ruled as a shogun, or “supreme general.” Ostensibly, the job of the bakufu was simply military administration; in reality, the shoguns and their government eventually came to run the country. The relationship of provincial generals and lords to the shogun was roughly equivalent to the relationship of vassals to a lord, without the feudal European fief. The individual provinces were more or less independent; their lords, or *daimyo*, took oaths of allegiance to the shogun.

II. Japan’s Feudal Period: The Shogunates
A. Kamakura (~1185-1333/ Kamakura, Japan)
1. Mongol Invasion Repelled (The Kamikaze Legend)
In the 13th century, Kublai Khan, grandson of Chinggis Khan and Mongol Emperor (Yuan Shi-zu) of the Yuan Dynasty of China, envisioned a plan to conquer Japan. He wanted to make Japan a tributary state of the Mongol Empire. In 1274 and 1281 armies were despatched from the Korean peninsula and China to land in north Kyushu.
It was recorded that a thunderstorm harassed northern Kyushu in 1274 while in 1281 a typhoon hit northern Kyushu island. In both instances the Yuan armies suffered severe casualties from these natural calamities and the invasions were aborted. These “divine” winds have come to be known as *Kamikaze *which, especially during the war periods of pre-1945, have nurtured a belief in Japan’s sacredness.
2. Major Characteristics (Becomes Model for All Shogunates)
a. Rigid class/ social structure (China’s Neo-Confucianist Influence)
b. Zen Buddhism and the Warrior Ethic (China & Korea’s Influence)
c. Bushido Code or ‘Way of the Warrior’
d. A code of ethics for Japan’s feudal warrior class. A rough equivalent to Europe’s Chivalry (minus the romantic allusions).
e. Shinto, Buddhist, & Confucian influenced
f. “Saving Face” (The avoidance or elimination of shame)
g. Seppuku (Ritual Suicide)

R03c_The Tale of the 47 Ronin

Every year, the Emperor would send a message of peace to the Shogun. The Shogun selected a Daimyo to greet the Emperor’s messenger. In 1701, the Shogun selected a Daimyo named Takumi to greet the messengers. Takumi did not know the proper way to greet them. The Shogun’s secretary, Lord Kotsuke, was chosen to teach Takumi how it was to be done. Kotsuke was a greedy, mean and jealous man. He would not give instruction without pay. Takumi refused to pay. He felt it was Kotsuke’s duty to honor the order of the Shogun and teach him without expecting a reward.

Kotsuke became very angry. He refused to teach Takumi anything and took every opportunity to insult him. One day, Kotsuke ordered Takumi to tie the laces on Kotsuke’s sandals. Takumi resented the order, but he bent down and tied the laces. Then, Kotsuke turned to the other nobles who were present and, with a sneer and a laugh, said, “Look at that. This serf cannot even tie a sandal correctly.”

With this insult, Takumi lost his temper and self-control. He drew his sword and attacked Kotsuke. Kotsuke was not seriously injured, but Takumi had committed two crimes: he had drawn his sword in the palace of the Shogun and he had wounded an official of the Shogun. In addition, he had violated Bushido by showing emotion and allowing them to control him. For these crimes Takumi knew he must die. That night, in a shrine in a moonlit garden, he performed Seppuku. All of his loyal Samurai watched.

Takumi’s land and possessions were seized. Some of those possessions were given to Kotsuke in payment for the wounds he had received. Takumi’s loyal Samurai now became Ronin.

Among the Samurai of the dead Takumi was his councilor, a man named Kuranosuke. He and forty-six other Samurai formed a league, The League of the Loyal Warriors, to avenge the death of their lord. These Ronin felt that Kotsuke was at fault because he had insulted their lord. They believed Kotsuke had murdered Takumi just as if he had actually stabbed him. The league vowed to seek revenge.

Kotsuke suspected that these Ronin would plot against him. He sent spies to watch the Ronin and he hired more Samurai to guard his home and family.

Kuranosuke, however, was determined to fool the secretary into a false sense of security. So, for almost two years, the Ronin led wild and drunken lives. They seemed to have forgotten their dead lord and Bushido. When Kotsuke’s spies reported this to him, he was very relieved and began to relax his guard. It is then that the Ronin struck. Dressed in the black silk costume of the ninja, they slipped over the walls of Kotsuke’s palace. After a bloody battle, the Ronin killed all of Kotsuke’s guards. They found Kotsuke hiding in a shed behind some bags of charcoal and firewood. With great respect, they offered to allow Kotsuke to perform Seppuku and die an honorable death. But, Kotsuke was a coward. He begged them to spare his life and promised them large rewards if they did so.

Kuranosuke, seeing that it was useless to urge Kotsuke to die the death of a Daimyo, forced him down and cut off his head with the same short sword with which Lord Takumi had killed himself. The Ronin then placed the head of the dead Kotsuke in a bucket to be taken to the tomb of Lord Takumi.

The forty-seven Ronin had proven themselves loyal to their lord and master. Everyone praised their courage and faithfulness. Even so, they knew what they must do now. They had killed one of the Shogun’s high officials. They had shown that they were not completely loyal to the Shogun. For that crime, Bushido demands death. Every one of the forty-seven Ronin performed Seppuku. Their bodies were buried in front of Takumi’s tomb. When news of their deeds spread, people from all over the kingdom of Japan came to pray at the graves of these faithful and brave men.

Questions:1. What character qualities are exhibited by these 47 Ronin? 2. Explain how the killing of Kotsuke by the Ronin was a product of the same Bushido Code that required them to perform seppuku at the end of the tale. Isn’t this a contradiction?